Selective document positioning means in bed and cylinder print machines



1 1969 J. M DOWELL. PATTERSON, JR.. ETAL 3, 36

SELECTIVE DOCUMENT POSITIONING MEANS IN BED AND CYLINDER PRINT MACHINES Sheet Filed Jan. 9, 1967 awe/Wm JAMES MACDOWELL PATTERSON, JR

RHODES w. DAVIS a 1969 J. M DOWELL PATTERSON. JR.. ETAL3,421,436

SELECTIVE DOCUMENT POSITIONING MEANS IN BED AND CYLINDER PRlNT MACHINES Filec Jan. 9, 1967 Sheet 3 of 2 JAMES MACDOWELL PATTERSON, JR

RHODES W. DAVIS United States Patent 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An apparatus in a printing machine to shift a document relative to a printing bed, which bed affords support for a printing member having raised indicia for recording data onto the document. A carrier, for supporting a document to be printed upon, is mounted on the printing machine and connected to a handle or knob operated to selectively place the carrier into any one of a number of positions relative to the printing bed, allowing similar and/or different data imprints to be made at any one of a number of corresponding areas on the document.

The present invention relates in general to printing machines and more particularly to that type machine havinga fixed bed and movable platen adapted to traverse the bed, wherein by placing a printing member upon the bed a transfer will occur when a document is interposed between the bed and the platen. Printing machines for individual transactions are presently utilized for a variety of purposes comprising the recording of credit transactions, work schedule information, attendance reports, inventory control, stock control, maintenance control, order forms having a number of catalog references, hospital and library operations and for other similar purposes. Machines of the general type with which the present invention is concerned, usually involve the bed and cylinder platen combination where the cylinder platen is adapted to traverse the area defined by the printing bed affording support for a portable type printing plate and/or a plurality of variable settable elements such as rotatable type wheels or flexible strips carrying raised indicia. The nature of the present invention is to provide a tray for carrying a document where the tray is selectively movable to any one of a number of desired positions relative to the printing bed allowing an imprint to be made at each one of the selected positions.

By such an arrangement as described above, a document may be readily advanced or stepped along a printing bed, and on each occurrence an imprint :may be made with a fixed (such as a used plate ID), a semifixed (such as a portable type printing plate), and/or a totally variable (such as a plurality of selectively rotatable type Wheels) input data, depending upon what combination is desired for the particular application at hand. For example, in a stock control set-up, the fixed data or user plate ID secured to the printing bed might denote the location where an item is stored, the semi-fixed data or portable printing plate such as a plastic card might be embossed to denote a specific item that is being stocked, while the totally variable data or rotatable type wheels might be selectively regulated to denote the quantity of the specific item that happens to be in stock. A further bit of data might be recorded such as the date the stack was recorded as being available or inhouse. With the present invention, several lines of such type of information may be recorded with a mini-mum loss of time and at a correct location on the document in view of the document stepping ability.

Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accoinpanying drawings, illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front perspective view of an imprinter embodying a preferred embodiment of the present inven tion.

FIGURE 2 is a cross-section view, taken along line 22 in FIGURE 1, showing apparatus for moving the document carrying tray, and showing in dashed lines two further positions to which the tray could be moved.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of imprinter base bed 15 and tray 44 shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a cross-section view, taken along lines 44 in FIGURE 1, disclosing the selective rotatable type wheel assembly.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary detailed view showing the guiding relationship of the tray relative to the blocks 46, 47 secured to the imprinter base bed.

Referring to the drawings there is shown in FIGURE 1 a printing machine illustrating one embodiment in which the present invention might take shape, wherein there is disclosed a frame 11 generally noting a printing chassis assembly having a pair of side support plates 12 and a top face 13 upon which, toward the rear thereof, is mounted an imprinter base 14 having an upper surface defining a bed 15. Each side of the imprinter base is channeled at 16 to form a pair of parallel paths for guiding a printing head 17, by way of roller bearings 18, as the printing head is acted upon to traverse the area defined by bed 15. The printing head 17 comprises a shaft 19, and a roller platen 21 rotatably mounted on shaft 19.

Secured to bed 15 by suitable fastening means is an anvil 22 disposed to receive an embossed identification plate 23 which is located on the anvil by way of position guides 24. There is also provided a second anvil 25 for affixing thereto information such as; the station or users address, assigned number for recording purposes, etc. If desired, one could readily secure to bed 15 a variable number wheel device of the type disclosed in U.S. Patent Numbers 2,606,494 and 3,279,369, for the recording of additional information such as the date of a transaction.

In referring now to FIGURES 3 and 4, mounted at the underside of imprinter base 14 by suitable means such as bracket (not shown) and projected upwardly through a cut-out 26 in printing bed 15 are a plurality of digit wheels 27 mounted on a digit wheel shaft 28, each digit wheel having integral ends with suitable raised digits 29 preferably from zero to nine. The digit wheels are so positioned that the raised digits at the top of the wheel portions which are projecting through aperture 26 are caused to be imprinted upon a document 31, as shown in FIGURE 1, when printing head 17 is acted upon to traverse imprinter base bed 15. Extending outwardly in coplanar relationship from the side of each digit wheel is a ratchet wheel integral therewith and having a plurality of ratchet teeth 32 adapted to mate with rack teeth 33 of a corresponding individual rack unit 34 which extends from the rear of frame 11 to its forward end whereat perpendicular to each rack 34 is an extension arm 35 protruding upwardly through its respective elongated slot 36 at top face 13. Each extension arm is secured to a knob 37 located above top face 13 allowing each individual rack 34 to be separately and conveniently controlled from without. As may be viewed in FIGURE 1, alongside elongated slots 36 are printed a plurality of digits in numerical order, and above each one of the elongated slots is an aperture window 37 through which the numeric value or designation of the particular transaction at hand may be visually observed by the machine operator, these latter numeric values being printed upon the upper surfaces of racks 34. The arrangement of ratchet teeth 32 relative to rack teeth 33 of rack 34 is such that when knobs 37 are positioned opposite any particular number, then that number will appear at the top-most location on digit wheel 27 for printing purposes the number selected will also be registered in the corresponding aperture window 38 to provide a visual cross reference check for the operator.

Located adjacent and accessible to the interdential spaces between ratchet teeth 32 is a pawl 39 pivoted about pawl shaft 41. A spring member 42 is secured to an extension block 43 of imprinter base 14, adapted to normally bias pawl 39 in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed from FIGURE 4, about pawl shaft 41 in such a manner that the tongue portion of the pawl will fall within the interdential spaces between ratchet teeth 32, thereby providing proper registration relative to the bed of that raised digit 29 which is selected for imprinting by way of knob 37.

Referring now to FIGURES l, 2 and 3, there is shown on bed 15 a tray 44 bounded by document guides 45 for supporting and properly positioning a document 31 so that selected areas of the document will overlie: a printing plate 23 seated on anvil 22, station plate 25, and the plurality of digit wheels 27. Tray 44 is movably mounted for sliding movement on bed 15 and is abutted at each of its shorter sides by tray guide blocks 46 and 47, which blocks are fastened to bed 15 by screws 40 allowing the tray to be guided for movement in directions transverse to the length of imprinter base 14.

At the center of bed 15 is an opening 48 in imprinter base 14 through which an extension member 49, integral with tray 44, is downwardly projected, the extension member 49 being adapted for substantial bidirectional movement within the opening. Spanning the width of the bottom of imprinter base 14 and secured to each side thereof by suitable fastening means is a support bar 51 of L section. At the center of support bar 51 is a linkage member 52 pivotably supported between its ends for rotational movement about a pin 53, the upper end of the linkage member being attached to a pin 54 from extension member 49 for pivotal action thereabout. The lower end of linkage member 52 is pivotally tied to an actuator arm 55 by way of pin 56, the actuator arm extending toward the forward end of the printing chassis assembly where the actuator arm is turned upwardly and projected through a slot 57 in top face 13, and fastened to a handle 58.

In the illustrated embodiment, document supporting tray 44 is adapted for selective movement relative to bed 15 into and out of each one of three possible positions, designated as positions A, B and C, whereby an imprint may be made at each one of the three positions and at each position the imprint will be recorded at a different area on a document 31 placed in the tray. For convenience, the designations A, B and C are printed on top face 13 alongside the path traveled by handle 58 through slot 57. In order to correctly align the document supporting tray in each of its printing positions A, B and C, there is provided on the right hand side of the tray adjacent guide block 46, as illustrated in FIGURES l and 2, a plurality of indented teeth 59 designated as A, B and C, and within guide block 46 is a bore 61 with a coil spring 62 disposed therein and adapted to urge a ball 63 into engagement with each one of indented teeth 59 to provide detent action for proper tray registration.

There is illustrated in FIGURE the manner in which tray 44 is embraced into a movable but firm relationship with bed 15, wherein a recess 64 is provided at the lower side of guide block 46 opposite tray 44 and adapted to receive a finger-like extension 65 protruding outwardly from the neighboring side of tray 44. As may be observed from FIGURE 3 a similar type arrangement may be found at each one of the four corners of tray 44.

In operation of the present invention, a printing plate 23 will be seated upon tray 44 within the confines of document guides 45. The operator will then proceed to set up a meaningful number associated with the particular recording to be made, by moving knobs 37 to positions adjacent the corresponding numerals printed alongside slots 36, thereby rotating digit wheels 27 through the rack and ratchet mechanism described hereinabove. The particular number selected may be cross-checked since it is visually displayed at aperture window 38.

Handle 58 is then directed adjacent either position A, B or C to shift document supporting tray 44 by way of the actuator bar and linkage assembly. To ensure accurate alignment of the tray 44 for placing document 31 in the proper printing position on bed 15, the registration assembly is employed in such a manner that when tray 44 is moved to the general area of position A, spring 62 will bias ball or detent 63 into indented tooth 59 designated as A, and the occurrence of such a detent action would be readily known by either being visually observed, heard as a click or felt at the handle 53. The detent 63 is also designed to be operative to maintain alignment of the tray throughout the printing operation.

All the printing elements and the document having been carefully positioned, printing head 17 is moved across bed 15 to imprint the selected area on the form with the fixed, semi-fixed and variable data set up at the bed. At the completion of the printing cycle of printing head 17, it may now be desired to print a second selected area on document 31 and this can be easily accomplished by selectively repositioning tray 44 through handle 58 into position B or C in the manner described above. Depending upon what is desired to be recorded, printing plate 23 may be substituted for and/or the combination of numbers at the printing position on digit wheels 27 might be changed, prior to each imprint operation.

It is, of course, quite apparent that many other types of registration devices might be employed for alignment of the document supporting tray, for example, a ratchet assembly might be used instead of the ball and detent combination shown. Furthermore, in some instances it might be advantageous to provide registration means at or about the path traversed by handle 58 or actuator arm 55.

Another modification of the present invention might take form in those types of imprinting machines where the structural path utilized for guiding a printing head across a bed lies above the bed (such as, for example, the C clamp shaped imprinted disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,274,931, issued Sept. 27, 1966, to J. M. Patterson, In), where it is readily evident that movement of a document supporting tray could be accomplished by a handle which is directly coupled or integral with the tray and extended outwardly from the bed area for convenient manipulation.

Hence, while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described and illustrated, and selected variations and variations have been referred to, it is to be understood that the present embodiment is capable of further modifications and variations.

We claim:

1. A printing machine comprising:

a bed on the frame for supporting a printing device bearing data to be printed, said bed having an opening extending therethrough,

a printing head including a platen mounted on the frame and adapted to move through a path across the bed for printing said data onto a form interposed between the printing head path and the bed,

tray means movably mounted on said frame over said opening and adapted to support said form for printing,

selector means connected to said tray through said opening for moving said tray relative to the bed into any one of a number of positions, said selector means including:

a vertically extending linkage member, the upper end of which is connected to the bottom of said tray through said opening,

a pin fixedly mounted with respect to said frame, said linkage member being pivotally supported between its ends for rotational movement about said pin, and

an actuator arm pivotally tied to the lower end of said linkage member,

said tray having open portions formed therein so that said printing head may move through said path to print said data on the form regardless of the selected position of said tray.

2. A printing machine according to claim 1 including:

registration means for correctly aligning said tray with each one of said positions.

3. A printing machine according to claim 2 wherein:

said registration means comprises biased means mounted for movement into and out of engagement with said tray.

4. A printing machine according to claim 1 wherein:

said actuator arm comprises a handle slidable along an indicia marked control panel.

5. A printing machine according to claim 4 including:

means for guiding the movement of the tray in a single selected path relative to the bed.

6. A printing machine according to claim 5 including:

means on said bed opposite an area to be occupied by part of a document on the tray for further supporting a plate-like printing device bearing data to be printed,

said printing head further adapted to traverse the bed area supporting the plate-like printing device for printing such data onto the document.

7. A printing machine according to claim 1 including type means bearing a plurality of printing elements each selectively settable into a printing position at the bed by an operator, said frame supporting said type means,

said plurality of printing elements comprising a plurality of type wheels coaxially mounted in adjacent relation, each of the type wheels having integral gear teeth and being capable of manual rotation.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS WILLIAM B. PENN, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

